How to craft and use a name tag in Minecraft

Everyone knows the routine of getting as many animals in Minecraft as possible, but never being able to tell them apart. Hoping you got lucky and found a name tag while exploring got old fast. Luckily, now you can craft a name tag, you won't have to face those problems or get yours and your friends' dogs mixed up again. If anything, it'll save you from accidentally taking a swing at a wolf that isn't yours and meeting an untimely end.

Before the Tiny Takeover update, name tags could only be found in places like Woodland Mansions, Dungeons, and Mineshafts, so being able to craft them now is a total game-changer. Despite how hard they were to find before, the crafting recipe is surprisingly easy to gather the resources for too. Here's what you need to do.

How to craft a name tag in Minecraft

To craft a name tag, you'll need the following materials:

• 1x Iron, Copper, or Gold nugget
• 1x Paper

Place the metal nugget in one of the top corners, and the paper in the square diagonally below. This will result in the name tag popping up and saving you from a good few hours of scouring dungeons for one. The metal you use doesn't alter the appearance or durability of the name tag, so just use whatever you've got lying around.

What's extra convenient about this crafting recipe is that you don't need to take your crafting materials to a crafting table before you can create one. You can craft them from your inventory since you only need two spaces. So, there's no excuse for you to not name your entire barnyard, really.

How to use a name tag in Minecraft

To use a name tag in Minecraft, you need to take it to an anvil. Place the tag in the anvil and use the text box to type in your animal's name. The named tag will then pop up to the right, and taking it out of that box will absorb one of your enchantment levels. If the tag doesn't pop up, there's a chance you don't have enough XP to complete the craft.

With your name tag in your hand, go up to the mob you want to name and right click. The name will now pop up above their head. But once you name an animal, the tag is consumed and there's no way to take it back. The only restrictions on these tags are the fact that you cannot name the Ender Dragon or other players, but aside from that you can let your creativity run wild.